Africa is facing a mathematical impossibility that threatens to dismantle decades of public health progress. As the continent’s leaders prepare to gather in Addis Ababa for the AU Heads of State Summit, a coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) is blowing the whistle on a looming fiscal cliff.
Over the past 4 years, Official Development Assistance (ODA) to Africa contracted by 70 percent—the largest decline in recent history. Simultaneously, the continent has seen a 41 percent surge in disease outbreaks. While the threats are multiplying, the chequebook is closing.
On 5th February 2026, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Africa, in collaboration with Africa REACH, WACI Health, an Africa regional advocacy organization, and Resilience Action Network Africa (RANA), an independent African CSO advocacy network, will convene a high-level webinar to address the “$17 Question“. Currently, total health spending across many African nations averages just $17 per person per year. The minimum required for essential services? $60.
“We cannot beg our way out of a $43 per person deficit,” says Dr Penninah Iutung, the AHF Executive Vice President. “With donor priorities shifting and assistance declining, Africa must pivot from reliance to sovereignty. This isn’t just about health; it’s about continental security.”
